


The Way of the Fairy Tail Mages

by talesofsinsandmonsters



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: A lot of dialogue from the show, Elemental Magic, Eventual Smut, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Fairy Tail Dragon Slayers, False Pregnancy, Jealousy, Light Bondage, Light Dom/sub, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Oral Sex, Polyamory, Possessive Behavior, Possible Character Death, Pregnancy, Pregnancy Scares, Threesome - F/M/M, slightly AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-09
Updated: 2016-01-09
Packaged: 2018-05-12 19:53:48
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5678578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/talesofsinsandmonsters/pseuds/talesofsinsandmonsters
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“We learned our own weaknesses right now, so what do we do next? Grow stronger! Face them head on! When were all alone, it might be too frightening to bear, but we’re all alright beside each other. We’ve got our comrades right here! There’s nothing to fear! WE’RE NOT ALONE!!”</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Fairy Tail

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first story on AO3. I hope it is enjoyable!

“Excuse me, Madam? Is your companion alright?” The train conductor asked, laughing nervously as a pink haired girl roughly kicked the pink haired boy who lay face down on the train’s floor.

Clare Gallagher looked up at the man, her dark golden eyes shining mischievously.

“Yes, he’s fine!” she explained, landing another well placed blow to her fallen comrade’s ribs, “happens every time we travel!” A small blue cat with a green pack on it’s back hopped up suddenly, shaking the pink haired boy.

“Natsu! We made it to Hargeon! Come on! Get up, get up!” 

“Never....I’m never riding a stupid train again!” the boy, Natsu, grumbled, before a wave of dizziness overcame him and he had to fight down nausea. Clare leaned down and grabbed the cat in her arms, her own pack slung across one shoulder.

“Leave him alone, Happy,” she carried him out the door, looking around the train station.

“If our information is correct, then we should find that salamander somewhere in this town!” Happy exclaimed, gesturing around. “Come on, Natsu!  Hurry up!”

“Just give me a second, would you!?” Natsu demanded, pulling himself to lean out the window of the train, trying to get some fresh air. The train suddenly pulled away from the platform, taking Natsu with it.

“No!” He cried, voice getting fainter and fainter, “Clare! Help me!”

“Uh-oh,” Happy murmured, as he watched Natsu vanish in the distance from the safety of Clare’s arms. “There he goes.”

“Serves him right,” Clare sighed, closing her eyes and turning away, “Idiot.”

* * *

 

“Oh, man,” Natsu grumbled, slowly walking beside Clare and Happy, “I ended up riding the train twice.”

“You gotta get over that motion sickness,” Happy said cheerfully as he walked between the two Fire Mages.

“Now I’m so hungry I could eat my hand,” Natsu continued.

“Too bad we don’t have any money for food,” Clare sighed, “anyways, this Salamander we’re looking for, you think he’s Igneel, right?”

“Aye,” Happy replied, “because the only Fire Dragon I’ve ever heard of besides Atlas Flame is Igneel.”

“That’s true,” Natsu agreed.

“And I’m pretty sure if Atlas were flying around here, we’d know about it.” Clare said, then added under her breath, “then again, Igneel’d be pretty hard to miss too.” A few loud, excited squeals sounded from the town square, drawing their attention.

“AH, SALAMANDER! HE’S SO DREAMY! HE’S SO HOT!”

“Salamander?” Happy and Natsu asked, looking at each other excitedly. Clare narrowed her eyes, suspicious of the timing. Natsu, however, started running in the direction of the commotion, which forced the pink haired fire-mage to follow after him.

“Speak of the devil! We’re in luck today Happy!” Natsu cried as he ran.

The small blue cat jumped up happily with a shout of, “Aye!”

“Igneel!” Natsu called, pushing through a throng of girls, “Igneel! Igneel, it’s me!”

He froze upon seeing the dark haired man standing in the center of the circle. Clare appeared at the edge, arms behind her head.

“Who the heck are you?” she deadpanned.

“ME?” The man questioned, before making a flourishing movement with his hand. “I’m Salamander. Surely you’ve heard of me before?” Salamander opened his eyes, and gasped as he saw the two mages and their cat already halfway down the street, a cloud of disappointment surrounding Natsu. “Hey! Wait a minute!”

The sound of air moving alerted Clare to an incoming attack. She sidestepped just in time to avoid being tackled by some angry girls. They took Natsu to the ground instead, shouting about his rudeness and how Salamander was the greatest wizard to exist.

“Now, now, my lovelies, let him go!” Salamander smirked, “I’m sure the poor boy didn’t mean anything malicious by it.” He handed an irritated Clare an autograph with a smirk. “Here’s an autograph. Now you can brag to all your friends.”

“She’s not interested!” Natsu snapped, grabbing Clare around the waist and trying to haul her away.

At this, the horde of fangirls got angry again, and threw Natsu in the trash rather violently. Clare sighed and picked Happy up in her arms again. The cat gripped onto her.

“Looks like it wasn’t him, after all,” he commented.

“Definitely not him,” Natsu grunted, voice muffled by the trash.

“Well,” Salamander sighed, “I’m afraid I must be going, I have business to attend to.”

“You’re going already?!” All the girls whined, making Clare sneer, sticking her pinky in her ear to stop them from ringing.

“Time for the red carpet!” Salamander snapped his fingers, and flames appeared at his feet, lifting him up off the ground. “I’m having a soiree on my yacht tonight, and you’re all invited!” he called down, before his flames blasted him away rather gracefully.

“Who the heck was that guy?” Natsu asked, still face down on the ground. Clare grabbed Natsu by the collar and lifted him to his feet, golden eyes dark. The fire mage grinned sheepishly at his best friend.

“I dunno,” a voice responded to his question, “But he was a real creep!”

“Hmm?” The two mages and their cat looked over to see a blonde haired, brown eyed girl in a blue and white shirt and a blue skirt standing there. The girl closed her eyes, smiled and waved.

“Thank you for your help,” she said.

“Uhh,” was Natsu’s brilliant response.

* * *

 

“My name’s Lucy. It’s nice to meet you!” the blonde said, watching Natsu and Happy scarfing down their food. Clare sat beside the blonde, eating her food slowly, but slapping Natsu hard in the hand whenever he attempted to snatch it from her.

“I’m Clare,” the pinkette replied, before pointing a pair of chopsticks at Happy, who was attempting to grab the salmon in front of her, “touch it and you lose your paw, cat!”

“Aye!” Happy responded, snatching his hand back.

“Uh...You’re Natsu and Happy, right?”

“Uh-huh! You’re so nice,” Natsu spoke through a mouthful of food.

“Thanks, you can slow down, we’re not in a hurry. Food is kind of flying everywhere.” Lucy winced as she was hit in the face with a bit of jelly. “Evidently that Salamander guy was using a love charm to make all the girls in town fall for him! Charm spells have the ability to trick people into doing things against their own will. But they’ve been banned for years, nobody even sells them anymore. He must have gone through a lot of trouble to get his hands on it. What a creep! I fell victim to his spell, but I snapped out of it, once you guys came barging in. I can’t thank you enough.”

“No problem,” Natsu, again, spoke around a mouthful of food.

“And I know I may not look like it, but, I’m a wizard too.”

“Is that so?” The comment came from Clare, but if truth be told, she wasn’t actually listening to Lucy.

“Yeah, but I haven’t joined a guild yet or anything. Oh, I should probably explain-”

Clare tuned the girl out even more, thinking instead about what she’d do once she got home. Make out with Gray, maybe, or pick a fight with Laxus, as was the norm for her when her and Natsu’s usual team members decided to branch off on their own for a while.

“...And the guild I want to join is the most popular one of all!” Lucy’s squealing snapped Clare out of her daydreaming, “Oh, all this magic talk must be super confusing to you three, huh? But I’m telling you, I’m definitely going to get into that guild someday. And then I’m gonna take all kinds of exciting jobs and make tons of money!”

“Oh,” Natsu said, “Yeah?”

“You talk a lot,” Happy muttered.

“Oh!” Lucy exclaimed, “I almost forgot, you guys came here to try and find someone, didn’t you?”

“We’re looking for Igneel!” Happy explained.

“We heard that a Salamander was gonna be in this town, so we came looking to see if it was true. Turns out it was somebody else.”

“Yeah, that guy didn’t look like a Salamander at all.” Clare sighed, taking a sip of the tea in front of her.

“No kidding,” Natsu huffed, “I bet that guy can’t even breathe fire like a real Dragon.”

“Uhh...” Lucy chuckled, slightly confused. “I don’t get it. Your friend Igneel looks like a Dragon?”

“He doesn’t look like a Dragon,” Clare responded, “Apparently he is one.”

“Hey!” Natsu grabbed her by the front of her red travelling cloak, which matched his own, bringing their faces close together, “WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY ABOUT IGNEEL?! HE’S A DRAGON AND YOU KNOW IT!”

“Oh, please,” Clare easily brushed her hot headed best friend off, flames sparking in her eyes, her smirk almost wild, “we both know Atlas was the better Dragon.”

“Yeah? WELL HE LOST AGAINST IGNEEL SO TAKE YOUR STUPID FLAMING DRAGON AND SHOVE IT!”

“You idiots are overlooking one small detail,” Lucy sighed.

“AND WHAT’S THAT?” Natsu demanded of her.

“WHY WOULD A FIRE DRAGON SHOW UP IN THE MIDDLE OF TOWN?!”

“Uhh...I had thought about that, actually.” Clare responded, as Natsu fell over, their fight forgotten.

“Look, enjoy the rest of your meal,” Lucy put a couple hundred jewel on the table, and stood up, “and maybe I’ll see you around.”

Natsu and Happy got on their knees and bowed deeply to Lucy, who squealed in surprise.

"Thank you for the meal!"

“Get up, you’re embarrassing her!” Clare snapped, hitting them both on the head.

“Look, you don’t have to thank me, okay? You guys helped me out earlier so we’re even now.”

“I feel bad, though, because we weren’t even trying to help her,” Natsu muttered quietly.

“Aye,” Happy agreed.

“We have to do something in return,” Clare whispered harshly, “Erza would kill us if she found out we didn’t pay a debt.”

“OH!” Natsu jumped up, “I know!” he held out Salamander’s autograph to Lucy, grinning, “Here, this is for you!”

“NO WAY!”

* * *

 

“Hee hee! That was quite a meal, eh, guys?” Natsu giggled that night, leaning against a stone railing. Happy was sitting on it, looking out over the ocean. Clare was looking as well, her elbows leaning on the railing, hands folded and supporting her chin.

“Hey, look, Clare!” Happy pointed at a distant shadow on the water, “Do you think that’s the yacht that, that Salamander guy is having his party on?”

“Looks like it,” Clare responded, eyes flashing.

Natsu blanched, cheeks puffing out as thought about being on a boat.

“I’m gonna hurl,” he whined.

“Oh, come on,” Happy sighed, “It’s not like we’re going on it or anything!”

“Oh my gosh! That’s Salamander’s yacht!” a girl squealed to their right, “I wish I could have gone to his party!”

“Who’s Salamander?” Another questioned.

“No way, you’ve never heard of him?! He’s a super famous wizard who’s in town right now!" 

“Yeah! He’s even a member of Fairy Tail!”

That spiked even Natsu’s attention. He looked over at Clare, who had straightened and tucked her hands into the pockets of her traveling jacket, a smirk gracing her lips. Then he looked back at the yacht. He blanched again and put a hand over his mouth. “Oh no!”

[line]

Flames danced across the sky as Clare flew next to Natsu and Happy, wings of fire gracing her back. It was one thing she knew how to do that Natsu didn’t, one thing Atlas had taught her that Igneel had not taught to Natsu; How to fly using her Magic.

“Are you sure you’re ready for this, Natsu?!” she asked, shouting so her voice would carry over the sound of the rushing wind.

“Oh, Yeah!” Natsu grabbed a handful of Clare’s flames as some came close to where he and Happy were flying, and swallowed them in one go, “I’m all fired up!”

“Excellent,” Clare replied, before the wings disappeared from her back and she began to drop, feet first, onto Salamander’s yacht.

She crashed through the ceiling loudly, landing in a brightly lit, colorful room, in the middle of a circle of rather intimidating looking men.

Natsu landed next to her, his warm hand brushing hers.

“Hey!” Lucy was being held by two of the men, which was unexpected. Still, she had a wide smile on her face, upon seeing the familiar pink haired teens, “I know you!”

Natsu opened his mouth to respond, but at that moment, the boat creaked, and he gulped, covering his mouth and hunching over.

“GAH!” Clare growled, shaking him, which only served to make his motion sickness worse. “YOU ARE NO HELP IN ANY POSSIBLE SITUATION YOU ASS!”

“I knew this was a bad idea!” Natsu cried. Clare groaned in frustration and threw him down, stomping on him furiously.

“YOU ARE SO LAME!” Lucy shouted.

“Hey!” Happy was hovering outside the massive hole made by his two fire mages, wings flapping intermittently. “What are you doing here, Lucy?”

“Oh, Happy! This jerk tricked me. He said he was gonna get me into Fairy Tail! Hold on, since when did you have wings?”

“I’ll explain that later, okay?” Happy wrapped his tail around her waist, “Hold on!”

“AH!” Lucy shouted, as she was lifted up into the air.

“After them!” Salamander demanded, “We can’t let them report this to the magic council!”

“Wait! What about Natsu and Clare?!” Lucy cried, watching the yacht get smaller as they climbed higher.

“I can only carry one person,” Happy responded, making Lucy whimper slightly.

“Prominence Whip!” Salamander shouted, a magic circle appearing at his hands. Purple flames, like the ones he’d used earlier, shot towards Lucy and Happy.

“Clare,” Natsu groaned, looking up at her, “Go.”

“Right. You better be okay, idiot.”

“Please, I’m not gonna die, Clare. Your boyfriend wouldn’t be too happy with me then, now would he?” Clare opened her mouth to respond, and Natsu shook his head, “I know, I know, he’s not your boyfriend. Go.”

Clare smirked, and, in the blink of an eye and the flash of a magic circle, she was soaring through the air faster than Salamander’s flames. She appeared in front of Lucy, just as the blonde started screaming. Clare threw out her hand and caught Salamander’s flames, smothering them with her fist.

On the ship, Salamander growled.

“The Bitch is quick.”

“Hey guys,” Natsu groaned from the doorway, breathing heavily. Salamander’s men grinned at Natsu, and began to stomp on him, beating him into the ground.

“What about Natsu and the other girls?” Lucy demanded.

“Forget about them for now!” Happy told Lucy, “We have bigger problems!”

“What bigger problems?”

Happy’s wings disappeared with a quiet poof, “My transformation’s up.”

They started falling, screaming, drawing Clare’s attention. She watched the blonde and the small blue cat splash into the water and gasped.

“Damn! Happy!” Her wings vanished as well, by her own volition, and she turned midair so that she was diving headfirst into the water. She winced at the feeling of being submerged, swimming to where she saw Happy at the bottom. She grabbed him in her arms quickly and began searching for Lucy. The girl was a short ways away, a ring of shining gold and silver keys in her hand. She jerked her thumb towards the surface. Clare nodded and kicked off the ocean floor, propelling herself upwards.

On the boat, Salamander watched the waters calm.

“Forget about them,” he sighed, “Continue on towards Bosco.”

“The Fairy Tail Guild.” Natsu grunted, throwing his arm up to block an incoming kick from one of Salamander’s men. He slowly stood up, forcing the man away from him. “You’re a member?”

Happy, Clare and Lucy all broke the surface, gasping in air. Happy groaned and sat himself on Clare’s head, letting the fire mage do all the swimming.

“Here we go,” Lucy smirked, raising a key in the air. “Open, Gate of the Water Bearer! Aquarius!”

There was a bright flash of light, and the sound of a doorbell, before a beautiful, blue haired, blue eyed, blue tailed mermaid floated in the water next to them.

“A FISH!” Happy exclaimed. Clare clamped a hand over him, shoving him further onto her head.

“NOT A FISH,” she snapped. Then she turned a grin on Lucy, “That was awesome!”

“That’s the power of a celestial wizard!”

“No need to explain,” Clare stopped her, before the blonde could launch into a long-winded explanation of something that Clare already understood.

“Listen up, Aquarius, I want you to use your power to push that ship back into the port!”

“Che,” Aquarius scoffed.

“YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO COME FROM THE SPIRIT WORLD TO HELP, NOT TO GIVE ME ATTITUDE!”

“I wouldn’t make her any angrier, Lucy!” Happy warned nervously.

“Let’s get something straight,” Aquarius said, glaring at Lucy, “The next time you so much as think about dropping my key, you’re dead.”

“Gah, It won’t happen again!”

“I don’t like the look in her eyes.” Clare muttered, before grabbing Happy with one hand. Just as Aquarius started to use her attack, Clare dunked Lucy, using her as leverage to get her body out of the water enough to be able to use her powers. Her fiery wings exploded forward once more, and she took flight.

“HEY!” Lucy snapped as he surfaced again.

“Sorry, Lucy!” Clare said, watching from the safety of the air as both the ship and Lucy were swept up in a massive tunnel of water, washing up onto shore. The sight of the ship crashing made her wince. “Oh! Natsu!”

She soared over to where Lucy sat yelling at Aquarius, dropping Happy as gently as she could before landing next to Natsu. He was standing on the side of the overturned ship, glaring down at Salamander and his goons.

“NATSU!” Lucy cried, running forward with Happy on her shoulder. She stopped short, seeing the two pink haired teens looking rather angry.

“So you claim to be a member of the Fairy Tail Guild,” Natsu growled.

“So what’s it to you?” Salamander snapped back, “Go get them, men.”

“SIR!” They nodded.

“Let us get a closer look at your face,” Clare said, as she and Natsu removed their traveling jackets. Underneath, Natsu was shirtless, aside from a black vest with gold trim. He wore white trousers that ended at his shins and black open toed sandals. Clare wore a deep red bandeau top with a black, short sleeved jacket and very short shorts, paired with black boots that went almost to her knees. Around her neck was a necklace with a pendant on it in the shape of a dragon in flight with it’s tail wrapped around a round, red stone.

“Watch out!” Lucy cried, seeing the two goons running for the seemingly distracted teens.

“Don’t worry about them,” Happy said, a fish in his paws. “You’ve probably figured out by now that Clare is a wizard, but so is Natsu!”

“HUH?!”

Natsu knocked the two goons away without using an ounce of his magic. They tumbled back down off the ship.

“My name is Natsu, this is Clare, we are Fairy Tail Wizards, and we have NEVER seen you before!”

“You gotta be kidding me!” Lucy gasped, seeing the red mark on Natsu’s arm, just below his right shoulder. She saw the same mark on Clare’s left leg, peeking out from shorts, rather close to the inside of her thigh, a red so dark, it was almost black. “Natsu and Clare are Fairy Tail wizards?"

“Those marks on their bodies! They’re the real deal, Bora!” One of Salamander’s goons whined.

“DON’T CALL ME THAT, YOU FOOL!” The Fraud snapped.

“I know him,” Happy said, hopping down on the ground, features hardened. “That’s Bora the Prominence. Rumor has it he was kicked out of the Titan Nose Guild a couple years ago for bad behavior.”

“I have no idea what you’re trying to do here, buddy, and I don’t care if you’re a good guy, bad guy or what, I’m not gonna let you dirty the Fairy Tail Guild’s name!”

Natsu had hopped down off the side of the ship and was slowly moving down towards Bora, like a beast stalking his prey. Clare stood above, head tilted, ginning an all-teeth-bared kind of grin.

“And what are you gonna do about it?” Bora goaded, “Stop me?” He threw his arms out, and a red magic circle appeared, “Prominence Typhoon!”

The mass of purple flames shot straight for Natsu, blasting him into Clare, whose arms came around him as the world exploded around them.

“OH NO!” Lucy cried, and went to take a step forward, but Happy flew up and stopped her, arms and wings both blocking her way.

“That’s the way it goes, the bigger the talk, the weaker the man,” Bora chuckled.

“Ah, this is so gross!” Natsu complained, chowing down the flames alongside Clare. “Are you sure you’re a Fire Mage? Cuz these are the worst flames I’ve ever tasted!”

“AHHHH!” Bora shrieked like a girl. Lucy gasped loudly, watching in two parts horror, one part awe as the two pink haired mages finished gulping down the flames.

“Gross,” Clare placed a hand on her stomach, casting Bora an irritated look, “If I get sick later, I’m coming after you!”

“Thanks for the grub, poser,” Natsu smirked, throwing a strong arm over Clare’s shoulders, tugging affectionately on the pink braid that went down her back. He burped and blew steam in her face. She giggled and fanned it away, teasing smile on her face.

“WHAT’S GOING ON HERE? WHO ARE THESE KIDS?” Bora demanded.

“Fire magic doesn’t work on Natsu or Clare,” Happy explained to Lucy, his eyes wide and ominous.

“I’ve never seen anything like that!”

“Now I’ve got a fire in my belly that’s raging to get out.” Natsu stepped away from Clare, walking slowly down the side of the ship again.

“Ugh,” Clare rolled her eyes to the sky, “You so need to come up with a new catch phrase.”

Flames engulfed her entire body, making her look like some human torch. She jumped from her spot and landed next to Natsu, walking at his side, hands folded behind her back.

“Here it goes,” Natsu punched his fists together, before putting his hands in front of his mouth. “FIRE DRAGON ROAR!”

A stream of powerful flame burst from his mouth, striking where Bora and his minions stood. Bora was quick to use his Red Carpet technique to get out of the blast zone.

When the dust and smoke cleared, Bora’s men were almost all unconscious.

“Hey, Bora,” one of them grunted, “I swear, I’ve seen these kids before! The pink hair, the guy’s scaley looking scarf, the girl’s dragon pendant. There’s no doubt about it! He’s gotta be the real one. SHE’S gotta be one of the other three!”

“SALAMANDER?” Lucy gasped.

“I hope you goons are paying attention,” Clare, said, the flames of her right hand increasing steadily, “because this is what a team of Fairy Tail wizards can do!”

“HERE WE COME!” Natsu warned, charging to attack from below, just before Clare launched into the air to attack from above.

Bora cried out at the onslaught of flames of varying temperatures, well aware as his counter attacks exploded like fireworks, that the Fairy Tail Wizards were holding back.

“So they eat fire and then attack with it? But how do they do it?” Lucy asked, watching as Natsu was thrown into the city by Bora, only to come charging back. “Is it some kind of spell?”

“They have Dragon lungs to breathe fire, Dragon scales to absorb fire, and Dragon claws to attack with fire. Their brand of Fire Magic is one that allows their bodies to take on all the qualities of a Dragon. It’s an ancient spell that’s rarely used anymore.” Happy explained, proudly watching his two mages fight against Bora, who was looking more than a little worse for wear.

“Really?” Lucy gasped, watching Clare dodge one of Bora’s attacks, before kicking a large ball of fire at the man. Bora barely managed to dodge, due to the speed it was traveling.

“This particular magic was originally used to deal with Dragons.”

“Whoa!”

Bora grunted, put his hands together, and shot an attack at Natsu, destroying even more of the city as he did so. Clare threw up her arms and a wall of flames shot up around her and Natsu, protecting them from the brunt of the attack. Natsu smirked over at Bora.

“It’s called Dragon Slayer Magic,” Happy continued, “Igneel is the one who taught Natsu.”

“But why is Clare’s Magic so different?”

“Because Clare was taught by a different Fire Dragon. The only other Fire Dragon. Atlas Flame. Rumor has it that Atlas was more fire than he was Dragon, but Clare says the flaming exterior was just a precaution. One he taught to her, if you couldn’t tell.”

Bora didn’t wait for the Fairy Tail Wizards to attack. He threw his arms up into the sky, collecting a large ball of fire, and threw it at them shouting with effort. Natsu caught it easily, devouring half of it before passing the rest off to Clare.

“That was a hefty meal,” Natsu grinned, “You’re not doing too bad, but I hope you’re ready, cuz I’m about to cook you like a smoked fish!”

“YOU’RE GONNA DO WHAT TO ME?!” Bora wailed, immediately trying to flee.

“Clare!” Natsu turned to her. The flaming girl grinned back, before shooting into the air like the lava of an erupting volcano, and grabbing Bora from behind. The man shrieked and begged as he burned. Natsu punched his fists together again, eyes wild. “FIRE DRAGON’S IRON FIST!”

The blow struck Bora hard, and the second Clare wasn’t holding him anymore, he went flying through the city, striking the bell of the clocktower with a resounding ‘GONG!’

“Don’t be silly, Natsu, everyone knows you smoke food with smoke, not fire.”

“Where there’s smoke, there’s fire, Happy,” Clare said, the flames dissipating from her body, leaving her skin faintly smoking, “Case in point.”

“Wow!” Lucy gasped, looking at the wreckage, “That was amazing! BUT THEY OVERDID IT!”

“Aye!” Happy agreed.

“Oh, shut it, cat!” Clare snapped.

The sound of heavy, rushing footsteps reached their ears. Lucy turned to look behind her and squeaked, “The army?!”

“CRAP!” Natsu grabbed one of Clare’s hands and one of Lucy’s and took off down the street.

“WHERE ARE YOU TAKING ME?!” Lucy demanded.

“Oh, shut up!” Clare responded, “You said you wanted to join the Fairy Tail Guild didn’t you?!”

“So, let’s go!” Natsu grinned back at her, noticing her shocked face.

A wide grin split Lucy’s face practically in two, and she gripped the hands of her new friends tighter. “ALRIGHT!”

And together the four of them ran through the streets, and despite the army chasing them, they were all smiling brightly.


	2. Fire Dragon, Monkey and Bull

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the Second Chapter!

Alana Cortez looked around with a slight smile on her face.

The Fairy Tail Guild Hall was rowdy, though, since three of Fairy Tail’s resident four Dragon Slayers weren’t there, it wasn’t as bad as it could be. Nobody was fighting yet, at the very least, which meant, other than the loud, friendly shouts across the Guild, it was peaceful.

Until the door was kicked in, at least.

Natsu Dragneel stood behind the door, Happy, Clare, and an unknown blonde girl standing behind him.

“WE MADE IT BACK ALIVE!” Natsu roared.

“We’re, home,” Happy translated, waving from his spot in the laughing Clare’s arms. There were loud greetings to the two Dragon Slayers.

“Hey, guys! I heard you guys went all out in Hargeon! Had to go starting troub-” Natsu kicked the speaker, a wizard named Krov, right in the face.

“Why did you do that?!” The blonde cried, surprised, before watching as Clare made her way over to a table with a single man sitting there. The man appeared to be in only his underwear. Clare wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pressing her lips to the side of his neck.

“Hey, Gray,” she greeted. He turned his head and captured her lips for a moment, before growling as Natsu’s fight with Krov caused an all out brawl amongst Guild Members. He pulled away from Clare, turning with a sneer. Clare just rose an eyebrow and grabbed a cup of ale from behind the bar, drinking it slowly, ignoring the fighting behind her.

“So Natsu finally made it back, Huh?!”

“Gray,” Alana called over the fighting, “Don’t scare the new kid!” She hopped off her bar stool and walked over to the blonde. “Hello! I’m Alana Cortez.”

“It’s an honor to meet you!” The blonde replied, “I’m Lucy! Do you think you could tell me who everyone is? It’s kind of hard to tell with all this fighting.”

“Oh, Sure! The mostly naked one is Gray Fullbuster. He’s a very talented wizard, but he tends to.....Well, he has a bad habit of taking off his clothes.”

“It’s time we settle things once and for all!” Gray said as he started stomping towards the brawl.

Cana called out to him, “Gray, your clothes!”

“I DON’T HAVE TIME FOR THAT!” Gray napped back. Cana rolled her eyes.

“That young woman there is Cana Alberona. She holds the record for Fairy Tail’s heaviest drinker.” Alana said, pointing to Cana.

“See,” Cana sighed, “I don’t date the men here because they have no class.” She lifted a large barrel of wine to her lips and began to drink.

“Come over here and fight me, Natsu!” Gray growled.

“Not until you put on some clothes!” Natsu snapped back.

“It’s only noon, and you boys are already whining like babies!” Elfman complained as he walked across the floor towards Lucy and Alana. Alana gestured to him with a smile.

“This brute of a man is Elfman, he seems to think that all you need to solve any problem are two strong fists.”

“I’m a real man! You want me to prove it to you?!”

“I can’t believe he’s encouraging them!” Lucy sighed. She squealed as Natsu and Gray both turned around as one and punched Elfman in the face. He went flying, hitting a pillar in the guild hall. “They knocked him out so easily!”

“Geez, it’s so noisy around here, isn’t it?” Alana turned to the speaker, and narrowed her eyes when she saw Loke sitting with two women on his lap.

“That’s Loke. He likes to pretend to be a lady killer, but we all see the way he looks at Nalina. Unfortunately Nalina couldn’t bother to give Loke the time of day, so he goes out to find people who will.”

A jar came out of nowhere and smacked Loke in the face. He fell back, scowling.

“Are you okay?” One of the girls who had been on his lap asked. He sat up quickly, smirking.

“I’m gonna go fight now, but only to keep you two ladies safe, okay?” He struck a pose as they fawned over him. 

“Hello!” Mirajane appeared on Alana’s other side, smiling, “Are you new?

“Oh my gosh! You’re Mirajane!” Lucy squealed.

“Guess you don’t need an introduction,” Alana snorted.

“Don’t you think we should stop them?” Lucy asked, pointing at the brawl.

“It’s always like this. It’s best to leave them alone. Besides-” Elfman came flying into his older sister, taking both of them down for the count, “It’s kind of fun, don’t you think?!”

With that, Mirajane lost consciousness.

“AH! DON’T DIE, MIRAJANE!”

Gray came flying into Lucy. Alana blinked down at him as he hopped back up, fully naked. Natsu stood in the middle of the brawl, swinging Gray’s underwear in a circle and snickering.

“GIVE ME BACK MY UNDERWEAR, YOU JERK!” Gray growled. He noticed Lucy panicking behind him. “Excuse me, miss,” he said, “but can I please borrow your underwear?”

“AS IF!” Lucy punched him in the jaw, sending him flying again. Loke grabbed her up bridal-style.

“These guys are insensitive, a woman has needs-”

Elfman punched Loke, sending him flying as well.

“Real men speak with their fists, Loke!” Natsu kicked Elfman in the chest as Lucy ducked to the ground.

“I TOLD YOU TO BUTT OUT!”

“AYE!” Happy agreed.

“Ugh,” Cana sighed, glancing at Clare, who sat beside her, still not joining the fight, but annoyance was written across her features. “So much for having a drink to relax. That’s enough, you guys. Clare’s getting pissed, so I suggest that you knock it off!” Cana pulled out one of her cards, a magic circle appearing.

“Oh, yeah? I know Clare better than anyone here,” Gray challenged, his own magic circle appearing above his hands, “who says she’s getting pissed?!”

Elfman didn’t bother saying anything. He just cast his spell with an aggravated shout, raising his hand in the air as rocks enclosed it.

“You punks can be such a nuisance,” Loke sighed, activating his ring magic.

Natsu held out his flaming fists, grinning.

“I’m ready for ya!”

Lucy held up Happy as though he were a shield. The little cat didn’t seem bothered.

“Do they always fight like this?!” Lucy demanded.

“Uh-huh!”

“You don’t seem worried!”

There was a resounding ‘clink’ as Clare set down her mug. Everyone froze, staring at her.

She looked over her shoulder at them, eyes narrowed.

“Will you fools stop bickering like children?” She asked the question deathly quiet.

Gray dropped his hands, magic circle vanishing instantly. Clare turned her head to the far end of the guild hall. A large, shadowed man stood there, watching the Guild irritatedly.

“He’s huge!” Lucy gasped.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were still here, Master!” Mirajane greeted.

“DID YOU SAY MASTER?!” Lucy demanded.

Natsu stood laughing in the middle of the guild hall, “You guys are all a bunch of babies! Looks like I win this round-” Master Makarov slammed his giant foot down on the cocky mage. Lucy squeaked. Makarov looked down at her.

“Well, seems we have a new recruit.”

“Yes sir!” Lucy replied, voice shaking.

Makarov let out a shout, shrinking back down to his normal height. Lucy gaped again.

“Pleased to meetcha!” Makarov waved.

“What?!” Lucy grabbed Alana’s arm, “he’s tiny! This little guy is really in charge here?!”

“Of course he is,” Mira laughed, “Allow me to introduce you to the Fairy Tail Guild Master, Makarov!”

Makarov jumped up, towards the second floor, doing somersaults through the air. He landed badly, hitting his back on the second floor railing. He groaned for a second, before quickly flipping up onto his feet to stand on the railing. He cleared his throat.

“You’ve gone and done it again, you bunch of clowns!” Makarov yelled down at his Guild members. “Take a look at how much paperwork the Magic Council sent me this time! This is the biggest pile of complaints yet! Have you lost your minds?! All you kids are good for is getting the higher-ups mad at me!” Everyone winced, as Makarov trembled. “However...” The paperwork in Makarov’s hand lit on fire, “I say to hell with the Magic Council!” He split the flames in two and threw them into the air. Natsu dove, catching one of the flying flame-balls and eating it. Clare waited patiently for her helping of flames to come to her, holding them in her hands and picking at them.

“Now listen up,” Makarov continued, watching Gray wrap an arm around the female Fire Dragon Slayer’s shoulders and press his nose into her hair, “Any power that surpasses reason still comes from reason, right? Magic isn’t some miraculous power. It is a talent that only works when the flow of energy inside of us and the flow of energy in the outside world are in perfect synchronization. To perform magic, one must have a strong mind, and the ability to focus. It should take over your being and come pouring out of your soul. If all we do is worry about following rules, then our magic will never progress. Don’t let those blowhards on the Council scare you. Follow what you believe in! Because that’s what makes the Fairy Tail Guild NUMBER ONE!” 

Makarov threw up the Guild Salute, and everyone cheered, following the example.

* * *

 

Alana sat on top of the bar and watched Mira press the Fairy Tail Guild Mark against Lucy’s hand. The Mark was pink, a brighter pink than Natsu or Clare’s hair. Alana pressed a hand under her left breast, where her own Guild Mark was located. It couldn’t be seen, as her chest was wrapped in bandages, and one of Natsu’s vests, which she had stolen years ago, was thrown over it. Alana was barefoot, and much of her legs were revealed by the incredibly short shorts she wore. Hanging from a chain on one of her belt loops, was a small vial of black sand, which was shimmering faintly in the light of the Guild Hall. Also hanging on the chain was a large gourd, capped with a cork to keep the sand inside it from spilling out.

“Natsu,” Lucy skipped off to tell the Fire Mage her news, “look! Mirajane just put the official Fairy Tail mark on my hand!”

“Huh?” Natsu didn’t even turn from the Request Board, “Oh, yeah? That’s cool. Welcome to the Guild, Loony.”

“MY NAME’S LUCY!”

“Don’t bother talking to him now,” Alana warned, “if he’s looking at the Request Board, he’s probably not gonna pay any attention to you.”

“Make sure you pick one with a big reward, Natsu!” Happy encouraged.

Natsu snatched one off the board, grinning, “Whoa! 160,000 Jewel just to get rid of some thieves?”

“Sounds good!” Happy agreed, “What do you think, Clare?”

The blue cat turned to where Clare had herself draped over Gray’s lap. The man had managed to find his underwear and pants again, but his shirt and hoodie lay draped across the table. Clare pulled back, golden eyes narrowed.

“No. It’s Alana’s turn to babysit.”

“Who are you calling a baby?!” Natsu demanded.

“Shut up. Don’t start another fight.”

“Don’t tell me what to do!”

“Natsu, I’m gonna-” Clare was about to get off of Gray’s lap, when a soft voice rang throughout the Guild.

“How come my dad hasn’t come back yet?”

Everyone went quiet, as Romeo Conbolt stood in front of Master Makarov.

“You’re starting to wear on my nerves, Romeo. You’re a wizard’s son. You should have faith and wait patiently for him to get home.” Makarov told him.

“But sir, he told me he’d be back in three days, and he’s been gone for over a week now!”

“If I remember correctly, he took the job from Mt. Hakobe. He took that job with Nalina.”

Loke sat up suddenly.

“Nalina went with Macao? To Mt. Hakobe?!” The Ring Magic Mage seemed ready to go after them himself, but one look from Makarov stalled him.

“That’s right, and it’s not that far from here, so why won’t somebody go look for them?!” Romeo demanded, clenching his fists. Clare swallowed thickly and turned away from the scene, changing her grip on Gray so that she was hugging him, her forehead resting on his shoulder.

Alana bit her lip, crossed her arms, and looked at the ground.

“Listen kid, your old man’s a wizard! And like every other wizard in this Guild, he can take care of himself, and even if he can’t he’s got Nalina with him and there’s no way she can’t handle things! Now go home, have some milk and cookies, and WAIT.”

“JERK!” Romeo cried, punching Makarov square in the face. He turned and ran out shouting, “I hate you all!”

“Oh, Romeo,” Alana sighed softly.

“That’s gotta be tough,” Lucy agreed.

“I know it sounds like the Master doesn’t care,” Mirajane explained, without turning around, “but he really is worried.”

There was a crashing sound, and Natsu stormed out of the Guild Hall.

“What are you doing?! You almost broke the board, Natsu!” Nab shouted.

“Alana,” he called over his shoulder. The black haired girl looked up in surprise, before following after her teammate.

“This doesn’t look good, Master. I bet he’s going up to Mt. Hakobe to save Macao.”

“When is that kid ever gonna grow up?” Krov muttered, taking a sip of his beer.

“Shut up, Krov,” Clare said, voice muffled by the skin of Gray’s shoulder, “Natsu’s twice the man you could ever hope to be, you squirrel-toothed mongrel.”

“Why you-” Krov cut off as Clare’s hand thrust out and a ball of flame narrowly missed his head.

“Shut. Up.”

“Going after Macao isn’t going to do anything except hurt his pride,” Nab continued wary of Clare. But the pinkette didn’t move to attack him too.

“Remember, Nab, we can’t choose another’s path. Just leave him be.” Master sighed.

“Why did Natsu get so upset?” Lucy asked softly.

“Look around, Lucy,” Mira responded, “Clare is upset too, and so was Alana. It’s because they have a lot in common with Romeo. I think they see themselves in him. Just because we’re members of Fairy Tail, doesn’t mean we don’t have our own personal issues. We’ve all had our fair share of suffering and loss.”

Lucy looked at the ground in thought, as Clare stood up.

“I’m going with them,” she announced.

“I thought you said it was Alana’s turn?” Gray asked, waving his pants in the air.

“That was before we found out Nalina was missing too. Can’t leave a member of my team hanging, now can I? Put on your clothes, but you’re staying here.” Clare turned to Lucy, “So, newbie, you coming with, or what?”

Lucy paused, then smiled, “Yeah!”

* * *

 

“Why did you come with us?” Natsu goaned, head laying in Clare’s lap, gripping her legs with varying pressures every time a wave of nausea wracked his body, from the rocking motion of Reedus’s wagon. On the ground, Alana lay curled in a ball around Happy, groaning.

“I thought that maybe I could help!” Lucy replied, “Wow, you really do have a serious case of motion sickness. And Alana too!”

“No, Alana’s just got the Sympathy Sickness. Natsu feels sick, so she feels sick. Happens with pregnant women, too,” Happy responded, watching Clare comb her fingers through Natsu’s hair.

“Oh, it’s just another reason to feel sorry for you all!”

“What is that supposed to mean?!” Natsu snapped, before groaning again.

“Nothing!”

Clare sighed, suddenly regretting telling Lucy about the Dragons who had raised the Fairy Tail Slayers, about how they’d either left, like Igneel and Saryu, or died, like Neva Glacia and Atlas.

Reedus stopped the wagon suddenly, and Natsu blinked in surprise.

“I guess we’re here,” Lucy said.

“ALRIGHT!” Natsu shot up, instantly feeling better. “WE’VE STOPPED MOVING!”

As Natsu danced on top of the bench he’d been laying across, Reedus peaked in at them.

“Sorry,” he said, “but this is as far as I can take you.”

Alana opened the door of the wagon, Lucy right behind her. They were instantly attacked by a fierce wind and bitingly cold snow.

“Where the heck are we, Natsu?” Lucy shouted over the wind, “It’s a frozen wasteland.”

“Now we understand why Nalina went along with Macao,” Natsu mused.

* * *

 

“Why is it so cold?” Lucy cried, gripping tightly onto Clare, leeching the heat out of her. “I know we’re on a mountain, but it’s the middle of summer, there shouldn’t be a blizzard like this anywhere!”

“That’s what you get for wearing light clothing.” Natsu scolded, completely ignoring the fact that Alana was pressed up against his side for warmth as well. He was used to such things.

“Oh, please, you’re not dressed for it! Now give me that blanket!” Lucy snatched the blanket off of Natsu’s pack.

“Ugh,” Natsu groaned, “she just keeps on talking, huh?”

“Aye,” responded Happy, snuggled between the warm bodies of the Fire and Sand Dragon Slayers.

“Oh! I know!” Lucy gasped, pulling out one of her keys. “Open, Gate of the Clock Constellation! Horologium!”

A large clock fell from the sky, with arms, legs, and a head. Natsu gaped at it, wide eyed.

“A clock!” He breathed.

“So cool!” Happy cried.

“She only called him because she’s lazy and cold,” Clare responded, rubbing her forehead.

Lucy started talking, but nobody could hear her behind the thick glass panel.

“Your lips are flapping but there’s no sound coming out,” Alana sighed.

“She says ‘I’m staying in here and I’m not coming out.’”

“So why did you tag along when I asked?” Clare asked, crossing her arms.

“‘What kind of a crazy job would force Macao and Nalina to come to a place like this?’ she inquires.”

“You should have asked that before you came with us. They went to slay a vulcan, it’s a big monster.”

Inside the clock, Lucy paled. The three Dragon Slayers were already walking away.

“‘I want to go back to the Guild!’ she proclaims.”

“Go ahead and be my guest, I say back,” Natsu deadpanned, dragging Alana back into his side.

* * *

 

“Macao!” Natsu shouted to the mountains, “Nalina! Where are you?”

“Macao?!” Happy called.

“Nalina?!” Clare and Alana took up the shout.

The sound of the attack was hidden by the roaring wind. The vulcan crashed down between Alana and Natsu, showering them in snow. Natsu was forced to do a backspring to avoid the impact, separating him from Alana even further.

The vulcan grabbed Alana and Clare around their waists, grinning pervishly. Natsu growled.

“Alana! Clare!” Happy cried.

“Human womans!” The vulcan said, squeezing them tighter. Alana cried out in slight pain at the pressure against her ribs. Clare struggled, flames appearing on her hands as she pushed against the vulcan’s arm. It roared and threw Clare against the mountain side. The pinkette grunted as her head hit the ice, vision spotted. The vulcan hit her against the mountain once more for good measure, and Clare was down for the count.

“Oh no!” Alana gasped, “Clare!”

“You’re gonna pay for that!” Natsu promised, making for the vulcan. It sniffed the air and grinned, grabbing Clare up again before speeding away towards Lucy. It landed on Horologium, peering in at Lucy through the glass panel.

“Me like human womans!” It said.

“You pervy monkey!” Alana struggled. She tried to grab for the gourd of sand on her belt loop, but she couldn’t reach it. She contorted painfully to look over the vulcan’s shoulder at Natsu. “Natsu! I can’t reach my sand!”

“Alana!” Natsu reached a hand out towards her as the Vulcan picked Lucy up, Horologium and all. “Grab my hand!”

“Natsu!” She reached her only free hand out, and their fingers just barely brushed before the vulcan was running off with the three girls.

“‘Don’t just stand there, hurry up and save me!’.....She yells furiously.” Horologium shouted for Lucy.

Natsu watched the vulcan vanish with his girls into the whiteout blizzard, his black eyes burning like coals.

“Don’t worry, Alana,” he murmured softly, “I’m coming for ya. For all of ya.”

* * *

 

As soon as the monkey had set the three of them down, Alana stood in a defensive stance. She was just about to attack when a muffled cry to her left drew her attention. Alana gasped.

“Nalina!”

The Winter Dragon Slayer was hanging from a chain attached to the ceiling, her feet only about an inch from the ground. She appeared to be rather beaten up, but she was alive, and her green eyes were wide. Her shorts were slung low on her hips, revealing a bit of the silver-blue Fairy Tail mark on her pelvis. The black scarf that she had wrapped around her chest in lieu of a shirt was starting to come unraveled, and was slightly frayed at the ends. Her weapons belt and thigh holster were on the ground and the white bandages that she had wrapped around her thighs were torn. Some of the bandages from her lower right thigh had been undone and used as a gag.

Alana made quick work of this gag, dropping the bandages on the ground. Nalina took a deep breath, before smiling weakly at Alana.

“Hey there, Sand Princess. Glad you finally came looking.”

“Sorry it took us so long,” Alana went to get Nalina off the chains, but the metal was bitter cold. “Don’t worry about a thing, Natsu will be here soon and we’ll kick this vulcan’s ass. Where’s Macao?”

“That’s the thing-”

Lucy’s voice suddenly sounded through the ice cave that they were in.

“Ah! Where’d you go, Horologium?! How dare you disappear on me!?”

“Sorry,” the Clock responded, voice echoing as he returned to the spirit world, “But my time is up. Take care.”

“Give me an extension! Please!” There was no answer, and Lucy didn’t like the gleam in the vulcan’s eyes as it hovered over her and the fallen Fire Dragon Slayer. “AHHH! ALANA!”

“SAND DRAGON’S DESERT WIND!”

“No! Alana, wait!” Nalina cried, but it was too late; sand was coming from Alana’s hands and circling around the vulcan. It roared and attempted to hit the sand, but the tiny grains were cutting into its skin.

“Woman be bad!” The vulcan shouted, and charged for Alana despite the sand attack.

“Whoa!” Alana went to dodge, but she slipped on the ice. As she fell, she closed her eyes. Strong arms grabbed her under her knees and around her back. She opened her eyes and saw a determined Natsu glaring the vulcan down. “Natsu,” she breathed.

“Hey, you big ape!” he snapped, setting Alana down carefully, “Where’s Macao!? Tell me!”

Natsu took a step forward and slipped as well, taking Alana down with him. Natsu landed hard and spun into a pillar of ice.

“That was so not cool!” Lucy sighed, put out that this child was supposed to be her hero. “Why does he feel like he has to make an entrance all the time?”

“Spill it monkey!” Natsu didn’t even bother to straighten himself out, his stomach against the pillar, and his feet by his head. “Where is my friend?!” 

“Huh?” The vulcan replied. Natsu threw himself onto his feet with a grunt, and Lucy ran behind him, leaving Clare unconscious on the ground between the groups.

Alana painfully dragged herself to her feet, then started trying to free Nalina again. 

“You understand me, right?! He’s a human man! Now tell me where he is!”

“Man?” The vulcan repeated. Then it started pointing out of the cave entrance. “Man! Man!”

“Hey! He’s gonna tell me!”

“Alana,” Nalina breathed, “there’s something you need to know about that vulcan-”

“Macao- whaa!” the vulcan kicked Natsu hard in the ass, and the pink haired boy went flying out of the small entrance, shouting as he went.

“Natsu!” Lucy cried, “Alana, this isn’t good! He can’t survive out there!”

“Where pinky woman?” The vulcan asked, stomping around on the area where Clare had once been. The pinkette was gone now, a small puddle of melted ice in her place.

“Where did Clare go?” Lucy asked, voice trembling as Alana came to stand with her, once again abandoning her attempt to break Nalina’s chains.

“My guess is, she went after Natsu. Don’t worry about them. It may be cold to you and me, but it’s just a bit nippy to them. We have bigger things to deal with, in any case.”

“Alright,” Lucy agreed, turning to face the vulcan with Alana “Listen up, you pervy monkey! You’re going down!” Lucy grabbed her keys, determination in her eyes. “Open, Gate of the Golden Bull! Taurus!”

A large cow looking bull burst up from the ground with a loud moo-like battle cry.

Behind Alana, a massive pile of sand was moving idly, ready for an attack.

“Cow?” the vulcan asked, clearly confused.

“I should warn you, monkey boy, Taurus is the most powerful Celestial Spirit that I have a contract with!”

“Oh, my, Miss Lucy, I’d almost forgotten what a nice figure you have. Why don’t you come give me a smooooch?”

“Oh, and he’s a complete perv, too,” Lucy deadpanned.

Alana chuckled.

“No touch my woman!” The vulcan growled. Taurus narrowed his eyes at the monster.

“YOUR woman? Them’s fightin’ words, ya mooooonkey!”

“Get him!” Lucy ordered. Taurus gave his battle moo again, and slammed the giant axe on his back down onto the ground. The Vulcan dodged the blow, making his way towards Alana.

“He’s fast!” Lucy gasped. 

Natsu appeared out of nowhere, kicking Taurus in the face.

“YOU IDIOT!” Alana cried, dodging the vulcan and throwing out her hands. “SAND DRAGON’S CLAW!”

The vulcan skidded back, growling. A long gash was now open on his arm, sand falling off his fur in bloody chunks.

“Bad woman...”

“Hey,” Natsu pointed back and forth between the unconscious Taurus and the confused vulcan. “How come there are more monsters now than when I Ieft?”

“HE’S A FRIEND,” Lucy snapped back, “ONE OF MY SPIRITS!”

“This guy?” Natsu pointed at the vulcan again.

“NOT HIM, THE COW!” Alana grabbed Natsu by the scarf and shook him.

“Wait a second, How did you survive out there?”

“Heh,” Natsu grinned, “Clare came to save me.” He pulled the girl into his side as she climbed in through the entrance, Happy on her shoulder. “Used her Fire Dragon’s Flaming Wings technique to pull me back up.”

“So you can’t handle other modes of transportation, but Happy or Clare are okay?” Lucy asked. Natsu narrowed his eyes.

“They’re not forms of transportation! They’re my friends! I mean, duh!”

“You’re right, it was totally wrong of me to compare the two.”

“You walked right into that one,” Alana sighed.

“MY WOMANS!” The vulcan suddenly shouted, bringing a fist down on Natsu. The Dragon Slayer put up his own fist to block it, and the icy ground around them shattered.

“Listen up!” Natsu growled, “I consider everyone from Fairy Tail my friend!”

The vulcan kicked Natsu hard, and the pink haired mage slid back on the ice several feet.

“Natsu!” Nalina shouted, “Be careful! It’s not what you think!”

“Whether it’s Gramps and Mira, those annoying jerks, Gray and Elfman, my very own team, The Dragon Slayer Four,” Natsu stood up straight as the vulcan advanced on him, and Clare took a stance next to him. Beneath them, two red magic circles appeared, overlapping with one another and showering the mages with red light, flames swirling around their feet. “Happy and Lucy, too. They’re all my friends. Which is why,” The vulcan jumped, and Natsu kicked it hard in the stomach as Clare punched it in the face, sending it flying, “I’m not leaving without Macao!”

The vulcan hit the ceiling with the force of the hits, and icicles rained down. The vulcan got back to its feet and roared, slamming it’s fists into the ground and sending a barrage of ice at the fire mages.

“FIRE DRAGON’S CYCLONE!” Clare shouted, and a funnel of fire surrounded her and Natsu, melting the ice on contact.

Natsu started laughing, “Your ice attack has no effect on fire!”

Alana went wide eyed when she saw the vulcan pick up Taurus’ axe, a wicked grin on it’s face.

“Natsu, Clare! Look out!”

“That’s not good,” Natsu muttered.

“He’s got Taurus’ axe!” Lucy cried.

The vulcan swung the axe, and Natsu dodged, but Clare was much slower. Though the blade didn’t hit her, it shattered the ground next to her, sending her flying.

“Clare!” Alana ran to catch her, being sure to lay sand under her feet so she wouldn’t slip again. She caught Clare just before she hit the ground, neither of them slipping.

Natsu wasn’t so lucky. When the vulcan noticed Clare go flying, it decided to go after Natsu instead. As the pink haired fire mage dodged the multiple attacks, he slipped, and the axe followed him right down.

“No!” Clare cried, and Alana threw out a hand. The blade struck not Natsu, but rather, a pillar of sand, getting stuck there, but slowly cutting through the dense sand toward Natsu’s face. Natsu grabbed it, stopping it with his hands.

Lucy grabbed Taurus and started shaking him, “Go back, Taurus! If you go back beyond the gate, your axe will disappear too!”

Natsu growled as his hands heated up the metal, letting the molten drops slip down his throat. Clare let out a laugh of disbelief. Only Natsu would try something so ridiculous.

“Is he heating the metal?” Lucy gasped, “With his body heat?!”

The axe slipped a bit, sand crumbling away. The blade cut a bit into Natsu’s palms.

“Natsu! Hurry it up! I can’t hold him off much longer!” Alana snapped, as Natsu swallowed the last of the molten drops.

“You got it, ‘Lana! Now I’ve got a fire in my belly!” Natsu spit the molten metal out of his mouth like a barrage of bullets, hitting the vulcan square in the face. While the monster was confused, Clare drew back her hand and punched the vulcan hard in the stomach, sending it flying into an ice wall. It stayed down this time, completely unconscious.

“Shit!” Nalina swore, struggling against her chains. “Natsu! Get me down! You have to get me down!”

“Hmm?” Natsu glanced over at her, and his face lit up. “Hey! Nalina! When did you get here?”

“Get me DOWN, Flame-Breath!”

“Alright, alright, calm down.” Natsu reached up, grabbed the chains around Nalina’s wrists, and promptly melted through them. “Hey, you seen Macao?”

Nalina responded by throwing a punch at Natsu, sending him crashing into the wall next to the vulcan.

“DUMBASS!”

“Good to see you too, Nalina,” Natsu replied dazedly.

“Wasn’t this monkey supposed to tell us where your friend is?” Lucy asked, pointing at the fallen vulcan. “Because I don’t think it’s gonna do much talking.”

“You’re all idiots,” Nalina said, approaching the vulcan. As she did, a golden Magic Circle appeared around it, and with a burst of smoke, it changed form.

“What the heck was that?!” Natsu demanded, scrambling away from the area, ending up on all fours at Alana’s side. His eyes widened as the smoke cleared, revealing an unconscious Macao in the vulcan’s place. “Macao?!”

“Are you telling me that big perverted monkey was your friend this whole time?!” Lucy screeched, hiding behind Clare and pointing.

“I’ve been trying to tell you this whole time,” Nalina grunted as she threw Macao over her shoulder so she could move him. The ice just behind the group, in a relatively clear area, formed into a bed shape. It was on this bed that the Winter Dragon Slayer lay Macao.

“It looks like he got taken over by that vulcan,” Happy realized. Nalina glanced at him, her hay colored hair falling into her eyes.

“Yes,” she replied, “very good, Happy.”

“Wait, what do you mean, ‘taken over?’” Lucy demanded.

“Vulcans survive by taking over the bodies of innocent people. They’re evil body snatchers. It looks like Macao put a good fight before the vulcan got to him, though.”

Nalina smiled softly at the blue cat, before getting to work patching up Macao’s wounds. After a few quiet seconds, Alana joined in. Lucy and Clare watched from off to the side.

“Macao!” Natsu called, coming over to the man’s side, pushing himself between Alana and Nalina. “Don’t you die on me! Romeo’s waiting for you! Open your eyes!”

Macao groaned quietly before opening his eyes slowly, “If it isn’t the Dragon Slayer Four...”

“Macao!” Nalina breathed a sigh of relief.

“I’m pathetic,” he sighed, “I defeated 19 of those brutes. But the 20th, that’s the one that got me. I’m so angry with myself. I’m embarrassed to go home and face Romeo.”

“Don’t be like that!” Natsu encouraged. Clare grinned.

“Yeah, come on, Macao! You beat 19 vulcans!”

Nalina stood back, smiling softly as Natsu pulled Macao onto his feet.

“Now lets go home,” Alana said, helping Natsu to support Macao’s weight. “Your little boy’s been waiting for you.”

Macao smirked, sucking up his pride to let his friends support him home.

* * *

 

As the group walked into town, Clare carrying a sleeping Nalina piggy-back through the streets. She was exhausted, having been awake the whole time the vulcan-possessed Macao had held her hostage.

“Is that Romeo?” Alana asked suddenly, looking ahead of them. Romeo sat on stone steps leading up to Magnolia’s church. “It is!”

“Hey! Romeo!” Natsu waved his free arm, still helping Alana support Macao.

“DAD!” Romeo screeched, tackling Macao to the ground when he laid eyes on his father. Natsu grinned and wrapped an arm around Alana’s shoulders, watching the scene unfold. “I’m so glad you’re back! I’m so sorry!”

“No, I’m sorry for making you worry.”

“I can handle it, cuz I’m a wizard’s son.”

“Hey, Romeo,” Clare passed Nalina off to Natsu, then knelt down next to the crying boy. “Nalina told me why she and Macao took the job. The next time someone decides to pick on you, here’s what I want you to say. ‘Can your old man take on 19 monsters with little to no help? Cuz mine can.’ Then you can brag about how Fairy Tail’s Dragon Slayer Four are always gonna have your back. We won’t tolerate one of our own being bullied.”

When Romeo grinned happily, Alana grabbed Clare’s hand and pulled her onto her feet, dragging her after their group, who had started walking back towards the Guild Hall.

Romeo hugged his dad one more time, before turning towards the retreating mages and shouting after them, “Dragon Slayer Four! Happy! Thanks for your help!”

“No prob, kiddo!” Natsu replied, waving a hand in the air.

“AYE!” Happy agreed.

“Lucy! Thanks for helping them bring my daddy back to me!”

Lucy turned around, waving and giggling, as they all continued to walk towards home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed it!


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